The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-08-17
A RELIC OF WAR TINES.
Lambdin P. Milligan and the Military Com
mission That Tried Him for Treason.

To the Editor Of the Indianapolis Journal:
In your issue of Monday morning my atten-
ton has been called to an article purporting to
be an interview with Lam bdn P. Milligan. by a
Huntington, Ind, correspondent of the Chicago
Times. AS to the general gist of the article
have nothing to say; but it would be a grave
wrong to every member of the military com
mission that sat jury in what was then and
still is known as the Indiana conspiracy trial,
not to correct some of its statements. 1 can
scarcely make proper statement without copy
ing the following paragraph from the article in
question:
''Ths interest of Governor Morton in my case
is explained by the fact that but for his influence
with the commission the night OF their final
action. and his promise to its members that
never should be harmed, l would not have been
convicted of the charge of treason. A majority
of its members favored my acquittal Governor
Morton. General Hovey. and other prominent
men favored such a result. 1t had been alleged
that my arrest for political effect and the
commission were told that acquittal would
be an injury to the Union cause. My convic-
ton, therefore, was demanded a necessity,
and Governor Morton personally pledged the
Nom bers of the commission that l should not
be hurt. Abiding to DR.. Bowles Horsey and
myself, all of whom were trial for the same
offense, he said: we will shield them from
harm. and they will be glad enough, after
a while, to take the oath of allegiance and secure
release.
coin would commute the sentence when it came
to him. When a copy of the record taken
to Lincoln in December, 1864, by nv attorneys,
Joseph E. Mcdonald and Jonathan W. Gordon,
MIR. Lincoln declared he could find nothing to
justify the finding against Horsey and my
self. and promised these gentlemen, in the pres
ence of General Singleton. that when the official
record reached him he would dsafirm the find
ing, and set Horsey and myself at liberty. DR..
Bowles he said, should be sent across tho lines
to his Southern friends until tho close of the
Ind nj mrs tad ha
official record to Lincoln, and when, after Lin
coins assassination, it was presented to johnson,
he promptly affirmed the finding without an ex-
animation. The earnest efforts of Governor
Morton to induce President johnson to commute
the sente were not due to his sense Of justice
TO his appreciation of the fact that my trial
was an illegal one but simply and wholly to his
promises to the members OF the military COM
mission"
AS member of the commission referred to,
would regard it disreputable in the extreme
to permit such reflection upon the honor.
fairness and justice of a court engaged in trying
men for their lives on one Of the most heinous
charges known to the laws of this coun-
try to go unchallenged, and knowing
Milligan to have a reputation for fairness
and square dealing in the place where he is
best known, can scarcely allow myself to be-
lieve that he desired the Times's correspondent
to make such sweeping charge: that a military
commission, such as the one that tried him and
his co-cors pirators, could be approached in any
conceivable way in order to influence their YER
dict Certain it is. that the commission never
was approached in any way Whatever. All
through those weary days, the conspirators were
tried the merits of the case. I very much
doubt whether the late Governor Mo rton during
the entire trial. ever spoke to a member of the
commission other than to speak to them in
-
only against the dead Governor but every mem
Der of the court, that shall not pass without
protest from at least one member of the COM
mission. The court was composed of upright.
honorable, intelligent men. Nearly all the
members composing it we're lawyers, previous
to the breaking out of the war, and. with the
exceptions of the president-Gen. Silas Col
grove, and Albert Heath then a resident of
Elkhnrt. lad. who was lieutenant colonel-all
the rest bore the rank of colonel Quite a
are alive General Cogrove, Gen. Thomas W.
Bennett, Col. r. P. De Hart, Colonel Stevens
Col William McLane and tine writer, and it will
be news to them, as it would be to their dead
comrades. if still alive. to learn that majority
of the members of the court favored Mr.. Milf
gan's acquitaL The entire paragraph quoted
above is so full of false statements that it is
scarcely more than necessary to enter a general
denial. Governor Morton did not a
mem of the court OF the night of final action,
much less promise Its mem bers that MllIgan
should not be harmed Neither was Milligan's
arrest made for political effect AS / have
already stated the case tried on its merits
and the evidence introduced. and 1 state most
alphabetically, that no candid. man can read the
testimony in the case and come to any other
conclusions-even in these piping days of
peace-than that every one of the conspi-ators
placed trial was guilty found by the court.
In conclusion l desire TO say that so far l
was acquainted with the members of the court
and this was of the most ntimate characters
OF hav haon xyall for any ipdu nal mr.
matter who he might have been, or what may
have been his rank, to have approached them in
any manner with view to influencing their
verdict Politics not even thought Of
Quite a number of the members of the
mission Democrats but the Indiana
spiators were tried for treason, the charge was
sustained and, instead of majority being in
favor of Millgan's acquittal every of them
voted him guilty. Indeed possessing as he did,